Martin Lewis is urging grandparents who are currently looking after grandchildren or have done so at any point since 2011, to claim a “little-known” credit which could add thousands of pounds to their State Pension payments.
Even if you have already reached State Pension age, the consumer champion said you may be able to make a backdated claim report the Record.
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The founder of MoneySavingExpert.com shared the details about Specified Adult Childcare Credits on the latest episode of The Martin Lewis Money Show Live with STV viewers.
He explained how State Pension payments can be boosted by transferring the National Insurance credit attached to Child Benefit from the Child Benefit recipient to a family member who is providing care for a related child under the age of 12, or 17 if they have a disability.
Martin also explained that the parent won’t miss out because as long as they are working and earning enough, they will get National Insurance credits through their employment. He added that it could “massively” boost State Pension for grandparents in later life.
He said: “If you’ve got gaps in your National Insurance, it can massively boost your State Pension once you get into retirement by thousands of pounds over the rest of your life.”
To get the full, New State Pension you need 35 years of National Insurance credits, for any State Pension payment at all, you need 10.
Martin also explained that applications can be backdated to 2011, which means it can be claimed by those who provided ‘virtual care’ during the coronavirus pandemic and subsequent lockdowns in 2020 and 2021.
HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) has previously described this as providing care remotely over the phone, by text messages or by video call.
However, he explained: “If you are at State Pension age and you don’t get the full pension and you did childcare before you hit State Pension age then you can backdate it.”
One viewer contacted the programme by email to share her success story on boosting her State Pension payments.
Rosemary wrote: “I was alerted to this a few years ago by you [Martin Lewis]. I managed to get credits for three full years which is enough to give me full State Pension, due to start in a couple of weeks.
“The process was quite simple and confirmation quite quick.
“Well worth the bit of effort. Thanks.”
Martin added that people have until the end of April to buy extra State Pension credits going back 16 years and then you’re only going to be able to go back six years, but he will be covering this in a show nearer the time so that nobody misses out.
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Who can apply for Specified Adult Childcare credits?
You can apply for Specified Adult Childcare credits if:
you are a grandparent, or other family member caring for a child under 12
you were over 16, and under State Pension age when you cared for the child
you are ordinarily resident in the United Kingdom
the child’s parent (or main carer) is entitled to Child Benefit and has a qualifying year for National Insurance without needing the parent’s class 3 NI credits which they receive automatically from Child Benefit (they can check their National Insurance record online here to see if they have any gaps in contributions
The child’s parent (or main carer) must agree to your application by countersigning the form to confirm that:
you cared for their child for the period stated
you can have the Class 3 NI credit for the period stated
For a full list of what counts as a family member for the purposes of Specified Adult Childcare credits, visit GOV.UK here.
When to apply
Specified Adult Childcare credits can be awarded retrospectively, to April 6, 2011 at the earliest.
Applications for a particular tax year cannot be accepted until the following October at the earliest, which means you can now also claim for the 2021 to 2022 tax year.
If you have been providing childcare, it's crucial that you take note of when and how you did so, this will help make the application process much simpler and quicker to complete.
How to apply
To apply for Specified Adult Childcare credits you will need to complete an online interactive application form.
The application requires the:
personal details of the applicant – the family member caring for the child
child’s details and the periods of care
personal details of the child’s parent (or main carer) – the Child Benefit recipient
applicant and the parent must both sign their declarations on the application
For full details on Specified Adult Childcare credits and to apply for NI credits, visit the GOV.UK website here.
You can catch up with The Martin Lewis Money Show on the STV Player.
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